You shall put the inhabitants of that town to the sword, utterly destroying it and everything in it—even putting its livestock to the sword. All of its spoil you shall gather into its public square; then burn the town and all its spoil with fire, as a whole burnt-offering to the Lord your God. It shall remain a perpetual ruin, never to be rebuilt. Do not let anything devoted to destruction stick to your hand, so that the Lord may turn from his fierce anger and show you compassion, and in his compassion multiply you, as he swore to your ancestors, if you obey the voice of the Lord your God by keeping all his commandments that I am commanding you today, doing what is right in the sight of the Lord your God.
Scripture passage from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright 1989, 1993, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

About Jean Marie Dwyer OP

Sr. Jean Marie Dwyer, OP is a Dominican nun belonging to the Queen of Peace Monastery in Squamish, BC. She has been a Dominican for many years and the author of two books: The Sacred Place of Prayer and The Unfolding Journey the God Within: Etty Hillesum and Meister Eckhart. And recently published: The Quest for the Divine: Philosopher, Prophet and Mystic.